New York, September 17, 2007—Exploitative and bad government policies coupled with corruption of national, regional and local leaders = huge environmental problems, destruction of land, abject poverty, outbreak of diseases, development of hostage-taking ‘enterprises’ and misery for the inhabitants.

Above are pictorial results of bad government policies and corruption.

The clearly frustrated local youths’ reactions, plus marriage of convenience with internal and international oil bunkering syndicates and pirates; hence, the abundance of revolutionary, and, or, operational resources. ‘Revolutionary’ to the youths; and ‘operational’ to the bunkerers feasting on the Niger Delta crisis.

Above are pictorial results of youth reactions and few ‘resources’ to vent their frustrations

Exploitative and bad policies upon/coupled with corruption of national, regional and local leaders plus reactions of clearly frustrated local youths plus marriage of convenience with internal and international bunkerers = flow of western weapons into the area, equipments, thriving ‘hostage-taking businesses’, government loss of control, crisis upon crisis with potential to metamorphose into full war.

Above are pictures of booming hostage-taking ‘enterprises’ in the Niger Delta, Nigeria.

Regional advocate and militant leaders mobilizing support to their cause for justice.

Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari Leader of the youth movement in the Niger Delta region, Nigeria Above are pictures of leaders attracting attention to the horrors in the Niger Delta, Nigeria.

Resource Control and War of Secession

The current struggle in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria tagged ‘resource control’ could quickly metamorphose into major wars of secession once necessary assurances are secured and sealed with major key players and powers, and that will be a major test for Nigerianism, a concept of British Administrator Sir Lord Fredrick Lugard started in 1914 – Nigeria as a nation-state.

Lessons of Congo Zaire

What is happening in Nigeria may not be new in African continent. We had it not too long ago in the former Republic of Zaire (Congo Zaire). Mr. Laurent Kabila fought Mobutu Sese Seko (full name: Mobutu Sese Seko Nkuku Ngbendu wa Za Banga, born: Joseph-Désiré Mobutu), the unsuccessful President-for-life and his Zairian army for decades (October 1996 –May 1997) from the bush to no avail until he secured major agreement with some foreign miners interested in Zairian minerals.

In May 1997, the foreign miners provided helicopters which moved Kabila’s ragtag fighters from the bush and dropped them on the outskirts of Kinshasa, the capital of Zaire and the seat of government. The unsuccessful President-for-life (Army Field Marshal Mobutu, that is), his generals and collapsing army took to their heels and unknown guerrilla fighter Kabila came out of the bush in the eastern Zaire, marched into Kinshasa and took over the deserted government (May 16, 1997).

Are Niger Delta militants Terrorists or Freedom fighters?

Hoping to ride on the current global effort against terrorism, Nigeria government has tried quite unsuccessfully to brand the youth movements as terrorists. Failure of the Nigerian government to carry the world along will be another cause for concern for the leadership of the oil-rich misguided giant of Africa.

With the clearly visible environmental decay and high level of neglect the region has suffered due to successive bad policies and unbridled corruption of Nigeria government; hence government officials and their contractors are seen as number one suspect as far as problems in the regions are concerned.

The fact that, the growing ‘business of hostage-taking’ is blamed on government failures, and the fact that the youth movements effectively packaged themselves as freedom fighters; these are very important odd factors to the whole equation against Nigeria; hence some clear danger signals for Nigeria nation-state.